Bills fear star LB Alonso has torn ACL after injuring knee in workout

A season ago, the Buffalo Bills went 6-10 with a first-year coach, a rookie QB (who missed six games due to injury) and rumors flying about whether the team will one day move to Canada.

But the one thing the team could most rely on last season was rookie linebacker Kiko Alonso, a second-round pick who started every game, picked off four passes, notched two sacks, led the team in tackles by nearly 80 and finished runner-up in Defensive Rookie of the Year voting.

But two months before the start of the 2014 season, head coach Doug Marrone and the rest of the franchise are holding their breaths after announcing Tuesday their star injured his knee. And according to FOX Sports 1 NFL Insider Mike Garafolo, it is believed to be a torn ACL.

Earlier Tuesday night, GM Doug Whaley issued the following statement:

Messages left by The Associated Press with Alonso's agent Stephen Caric were not immediately returned.

Alonso had hip surgery this offseason, which limited him in participating in spring practices.

After playing in the middle last season, Alonso was moving to the outside linebacker spot as part of the Bills' shift to a 4-3 defensive scheme under new coordinator Jim Schwartz. The switch was also sparked in part by the Bills' signing of run-stopping specialist Brandon Spikes, who is better suited to play in the middle.

Bills players are scheduled to report to training camp on July 18.

— The Associated Press contributed to this report